Grayscale on the Verge of Launching First U.S. Bitcoin ETF 

Grayscale’s latest job postings show that the firm is making active plans to launch a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). Financial regulators in the United States are yet to greenlight any crypto  ETF.

Grayscale Aims to Scale the ETF Hurdle

If the latest job postings by Grayscale, a leading cryptocurrency investment company with $40 billion in asset management is anything to go by, the firm may be on the verge of filing for an exchange-traded fund in the United States.

On March 9, 2021, Grayscale took to Twitter to post the link to its job postings, which shows the firm has nine open positions for exchange-traded fund experts (ETF), including an ETF Authorized Participant Relationship Manager, whose primary goal will be to develop new and nurture existing relationships with Grayscale’s ETF investors.

The firm is also looking to hire an ETF Compliance Officer, whose job will be to support the formulation and redemption process of Grayscale’s ETF, as well as its business expansion plans, and an ETF Creation & Redemption Specialist who will “be deeply involved in building, establishing and maintaining processes, systems and infrastructure that will enable Grayscale to comply with its regulatory and commercial obligations in connection with its U.S. ETF business,” the firm declared.

Other vacant positions Grayscale seeks to fill include ETF Finance Reporting Manager, ETF Market Maker Relationship Manager, ETF Product Development Specialist, ETF Sales Director, and ETF Finance Support Manager.

The U.S. Finally Welcomes its First Bitcoin ETF?

While the United States has one of the most vibrant cryptocurrency ecosystems in the world, with states such as Wyoming and a few others doing everything within their powers to attract bitcoin-linked businesses, the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has made life quite difficult for crypto market participants in recent times.

Since 2013, when the first bitcoin ETF filing was submitted by Gemini’s Winklevoss twins, to date, the SEC has rejected numerous ETF proposals from highly-reputed firms, including VanECK, and Wilshire Phoenix among others.

While the SEC is still trying to figure out how to regulate the country’s crypto space and has been seriously criticized for its snail pace, Canadian regulators, on the other hand, have approved three bitcoin ETFs this 2021. 

With more and more heavyweight institutional investors including Tesla, MicroStrategy and others, now adding bitcoin (BTC) to their balance sheets, it remains to be seen whether Grayscale will succeed in launching the first bitcoin ETF in the United States.